Mostly working actually. But I did spend a little time on Somercombe and now I have a week of annual leave starting tomorrow, I hope to get more done.
Firstly I purchased a granite pestle and mortar from Tesco for the princely sum of ??7. Then, in return for a helping hand, I got hold of a tubfull of fine coal from one of my neighbours. Some of this has been ground up and graded, first through a cheap metal tea-strainer to get the dust out, then through some 1mm mesh for something that can be u
Just been out and lopped those overhanging eaves from the Vollmer building, also cut back the roof at the gable. Looks much better. Another job done, is to make a start on the water tank to go on the roof of the main brewhouse. As I said earlier, this is made from the Will's vari girder pack. After working out the capacity, it may be rather large, but it does look in proportion to the rest of the building. Photos tomorrow with luck. But I do have to iron my uniform shirts and go back to work tom
Did a bit more on the brewery today. Had a look, with the aid of Google Earth, at some of the older breweries around the country and came to the conclusion that I needed a brewery yard. Not completely practical to have it surrounded by building where it was sited, so I am going for the layout in the pictures below. Another kit has been added, a Vollmer kit from an earlier layout. A little work to do on it, like a new roof and a lick or two of paint. The boiler house was removed and now resides a
Just spent 1½hrs working on this fence. The posts were put in a few days back. Tonight I added the wires.
You can just make out the wire. I used fishing line for this as it worked out pretty much to scale. Thing is, from normal viewing distance it cannot be seen, hence this topics title. I will persevere though, or at least until I run out of fence-posts.
Before I took the chassis over for milling I gave it a quick test run. All working fine . Buffer beams and detailing are now fixed to the body. Still trying to work out the best way for fixing the body to the chassis, but this is a minor worry. A later job will be to fit etched grills and wire handrails. Anyone know if Shawplan do them, I can't find any conversion kits on their website, the fittings page was last updated on 24 February 2004 .
I have now found what I need at M.G.Sharp. A1 mod
Knocked up a Dapol mineral wagon kit as a static for the coal merchant. Part loaded with a figure inside shovelling the load out.Thomas Muir's son perhaps.
Also looks like they have invested some money to help load coal sacks a bit easier.
I don't know the origin of these bits as they came in a box of stuff a friend was clearing out many years ago.
This is a view of the timber yard.
The nearest structure will have a roof added covering an open area to it's front. This is where a steam powered circular saw will go. On the far right of it will go a forge. The wood stores are from Will's and Atlas.
A couple of the brewery. The first is of the loading area. The second looking across the yard to the stables.
The building beyond the satble is the town fire station. This is the Skaledale one.
Still pondering over the signalbox.
Well, here it is, 'The Beast' My stretched Hymek on a Falcon chassis, to which I am indebted to 6026, for obtaining it for me.
Body now ready for what I hope is the final coat of primer. As for the final colour scheme, I am open to suggestions, but I don't want to make it too like the original Hymek scheme. One thought is two tone green, like the Brush type 4s, with white or very pale grey window surrounds. As for number? D0270 would fit in nicely between Lion and Falcon, but these were der
Finally I am getting somewhere. But where :?:
Well had to get the holidays out of the way. Then had to wait until my help had a week off and the days he was available had to tie in with my rest days.
So, last week we dug out the base and yesterday poured the concrete. We had to barrow it around the back as unfortunately the developers who put up my terrace didn't have the foresight to make the access wide enough for a concrete mixer. But I suppose they didn't have many back in 1904. Any
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Re: Somercombe. Burnt figers.
by JZ on Mon Sep 14, 2009 4:23 pm
Spent yesterday evening soldering up some benches and luggage trolleys. All from Langley, set 129a, LMS seating and trolleys. At this scale they look good enough for me. At least they are not GWR cast ones.
This morning decided after painting them, to get some figures painted. Didn't realise how quickly time was slipping away. I started just before 10am and was a bit surp
I am beginning to wonder whether to keep this blog up, or whether to go back to the old style and put it in layout topics. Personally I find the blogs a great way of updating progress and the latest are always at the top of the pile. But I don't seem to be getting as much feedback as before. Sure, people are reading it, but there is just not the comments there was before. And looking at other's blogs, it seems that this is the case across them all. I do enjoy reading other's comments and critici
Well, yesterday I had a bit of a running session. All of my loco's, apart from 3 non DCC ones, have been run in the last week. I was going to make up a tool cupboard for G&F, but it is hammering down at the moment and I really can't be bothered. I will be getting wet enough at work this afternoon, with trips to Avonmouth and Portsmouth Harbour. With a bit of luck, it will stop before tomorrow and I may then be a little more enthusiastic about going out to the shed.
With my ED finished, sorry no pic's but it looks just as it did before the conversion, thought turn to what to do next. With work on the layout somewhat stagnant, I'm sure when if the weather warms up I will get more enthusiasm, I am getting on with stock. First up is something I have fancied for a long, long time, a stretched Hymek on a C-C chassis. For this I have obtained a spare Heljan Falcon chassis. It looks like this could be a bit of a monster. I will get some pictures of progress on thi
Some new motive power has been seen in Somercombe.
S15 from a DJH kit.
Still have to take the brightness off the motion and DCC it. It also needs a crew and the weathering needs finishing.
My new Bachmann 3MT tank ready to work the stopper to Salisbury. The emblem has been changed and I have given it a light weathering.
My "Teddy bear". In the yard after working a pick-up down from Westbury via Yeovil Junction.
Finally for now, my Beyer-Peacock diesel electric pro
All together now, apart from a driveshaft to the extended end. Just have to wait for that from Bachmann. I will get some photo's perhaps tomorrow. While I wait to see if I can get some new airhorns and grills, I have modified those fitted. Footsteps will need to be added to the bogies. But apart from that and despite all I have done to it, it looks pretty much as it did before the conversion .
Just about finished my 2H, just a lick of paint to tone down the Black Beetle wheels. Sitting here in the bay waiting to depart for Yeovil Town. Gloucester MPV is on a run down to Exeter, while 3MT is on the Exeter-Salisbury service.
Ignore the front bogie from my S15 lying behind the platform .
Both of the units are ones I have always had a liking for. My Grandfather moved to Ropley in the early '60s and 2Hs were a constant feature of the line and as I never saw them elsewhere, t
Rest day today and some more work done to the brewery.
The main structure now has floors and windows. Decided to add a few bits and pieces to the outside of the buildings.
As you can see from the second picture, I have bricked up a few windows to add a little more interest to it.
Another little job done today was to finish this.
Bashed from a Bachmann Junior loco. New chimney, safety valves, handrails and buffers. Originally I bought this to test decoders prior to cutting the plu
At last . The shed is up.
Next thing is to get it secure and cozy.
I'll be fitting laminated glass in the windows. The side door will be fixed and panelled over, as will one of the double doors at the front. The other will be rebuilt, you could call it my Bulleid door :roll: :roll: , with 9mm plywood inside the planking, replace the batons and insulate it. Security locks will also be fitted and an alarm. Outwardly I want it still to look like a shed, so as not to attract attention.
I
Today I made a start on clearing some ground for a base for the shed that will eventually house Somercombe. Had to buy a chainsaw to get some old shrubs and a couple of trees out. Being green by nature, I have replaced these with 6 trees in another part of the garden(and I only went to Focus to get some epoxy).
Ok, it looks a bit like a building site, but it's a start.
Once the site is cleared, I will beforming a low wall around the area with concrete blocks before filling with con
Not done much on Somercombe since my last entry. I was hoping to get some done this week with my week of rest days, but I left myself available and ended up with 4 rest days work, so far. One of the little jobs I am doing, is to crew the rest of my steam loco's. I am using Masterpiece Falcon Figures. I have tried other makes, but the variety of poses makes these, in my mind, the best.
Just added crews to four more this morning, my 2 Q1s, a Black 5 and my 8F. First time using my phone
Decided that the layout needs some form of lighting. After costing out the streetlights, I decided to have a go at making my own. I will be putting them on two circuit. The night one will include the station and street lighting, plus some of the upstairs in the shops and the chipshop ,pub and cinema. The daytime one will do the shop interiors, goods shed. I purchased some white LEDs and copper tube for the street and station lights and tonight put together a prototype.
This is the design
Time for an update I think.
Finally getting some work done on the layout. It's been a while, but I have had a few ideas to get on with now. The last thing I wanted to do was to put something down and then be dissapointed with it. For the brewery/timberyard area I have looked out an old Humbrol/Euromodel wooden kit. This will be used as a workshop for the timberyard. I will build an open, roofed area to the front of this where a Woodland Scenics steam powered circular saw will go. Attached t
I am in the process of copying over my Somercombe thread. I will be editing post on the way so things may seem a bit fra g me nt ed. But bear with me, I havn't gone and pulled it up and started again.
Since my last entry nothing has happened on Somercombe. Although time has been available in the evenings, torrential rain has put me off going out to the shed. My eight straight days at work has now turned into nine and sthough I have quite a late start tomorrow, car problems mean I have to go to the garage instead of working in the shed. Never mind. I have thursday off and hopefully saturday I will get annual leave granted and then I am not available this Sunday. However, I have not been totall
It's been a while since I posted here and having to warm the shed up before working out there in this weather has led to a loss of enthusiasm . However I have not been completely idle. I have coverted one of my Hornby Stanier firsts into 'porthole' type. Comet sides. Quite pleased with the outcome and may do one of the old Mainline 60' ones.
Few odds and ends to do yet. Grab handles, extra footsteps on corridor side and I need to adjust the compartment arrangement. Not sure if they ever
